“He rejected you?”

After the flying carriage took off, Ophelia in a blue dress lifted her skirt and climbed the stairs from one side onto the platform.

Ona said somewhat awkwardly, “I’m sorry, City Master. I failed to complete your assignment.”

Ophelia stepped forward and pinched Ona’s fair chin. “That shouldn’t be right. In terms of looks, you’re not inferior to Pei’er.”

Ona’s face reddened slightly. “Perhaps… perhaps Wizard Saul really likes your sister.”

“Tch!” Ophelia released Ona and sneered. “Talk about feelings with a wizard? I’d rather believe he has no interest in even venting basic instincts with you.”

Ophelia walked to the platform’s edge, placing one hand on the parapet. “But since he’s already a third-rank wizard, reduced interest in physical matters is normal.”

Her index finger lightly tapped the stone, making “thump thump” sounds.

“He was only second-rank when he was with Pei’er, while Pei’er was already a veteran third-rank wizard…” Ophelia smiled, tilting her head to let the breeze blow through her hair. “Perhaps he prefers psychological pleasure.”

Ona’s face stiffened behind her. “City Master, you wouldn’t… How could that be?”

Ophelia paid no attention to Ona’s emotional changes behind her. The more she thought about it, the more interested she became. “This Saul’s body must contain some kind of secret. Ever since Pei’er got together with him, there’s been a shadow in her spiritual body that even I can’t probe. And this shadow must be the fundamental reason she could survive outside the Stargate.”

She suddenly turned around, her long dress tracing a sharp arc in the air.

“I’m extremely interested in him now! Before I obtain his secret, no one is allowed to let him leave Sky City. You must hold him here tightly!”

Ona immediately knelt down. “Yes, I’ll think of every possible way. Also, I’ll continue working hard to gain Wizard Saul’s favor. Please give me another chance.”

Only then did Ophelia glance at Ona, the smile disappearing from her face. “Go.”

Ona breathed a sigh of relief. “Yes.”

“Also, send a message to Kismet saying I have matters here, tell him not to come for now. We’ll discuss it again in half a year.”

“Yes.”

…

Saul still didn’t know that due to Pei’er’s situation, Ophelia was already coveting his body.

After returning to the inn, the first thing he did was call back the consciousness entities who had scattered.

“Any discoveries today?”

Agu had been gathering intelligence in the apprentice area.

“Apprentices here attend school for free until becoming third-level apprentices, but they need to pay for or prepare their own magic crystals and magical materials. After becoming third-level apprentices, they can work and live in the outer city area. It’s said many third-level apprentices work at the airport and on airships.”

“Those with good talent or money to continue their studies keep learning at the lecture hall, or go to the Academy of Knowledge and Academy of Practice. As long as they pass assessments, they can continue studying there. However, both academies have very high requirements for apprentices—only those with outstanding talent get admitted.”

After hearing Agu’s introduction, Saul immediately felt Sky City was like a university town.

“What about first-rank wizards?”

“Most first and second-rank wizards are in the two academies.” This was Beth speaking. Being originally a third-rank wizard, she was safest exploring the Academy of Knowledge and Academy of Practice for intelligence.

“The deans of both academies are third-rank wizards. But there, mostly high-rank wizards lead low-rank wizards and apprentices in experiments. Moreover, apprentices there don’t have easy lives.”

Beth crossed her arms. “This place is different from Bayton Academy—we genuinely taught, but they’re more like using apprentices as unpaid servants and test subjects. I bet the death rate of apprentices and low-rank wizards here is definitely higher than what they publicly announce!”

“This place is a big melting pot,” Beth sneered.

Herman looked around and raised his hand. “I discovered something at the airport.”

Everyone looked at him.

“The airport seems to be under martial law.”

“What happened?”

“Several people died on an airship, including supposedly a small princess from another faction. Now, to investigate the murderer, all airship traffic has been suspended.”

Ann continued, “Actually, before the deaths, airships had already started restricting entry and exit. I saw the wizard apprentice who was on the same airship as us near the lecture hall. He seems to have been unable to leave Sky City and is trying to earn money.”

Saul rested the back of his hand against his chin. “People who came on the same airship as us still haven’t left. It seems this port closure has a fifty percent chance of targeting me.”

“Eh?” *4

Beth frowned, her expression not looking good. “Could Wizard Ophelia not want you to leave? Wouldn’t our coming here be walking into a trap?”

“Don’t panic yet.” Saul remained relatively calm. “From current appearances, she doesn’t plan to directly detain me openly. Her roundabout way of blockading Sky City shows she doesn’t want me to notice. If I’m not mistaken, she’ll definitely use other methods to trip me up next.”

Saul said to the others, “Since that’s the case, we need to prepare early too. From now on, you temporarily don’t need to return. According to my assignments, covertly set up auxiliary formations.”

Agu looked worried. “But Master, Ophelia might harm you. Do you still want to choose her as the second one?”

“Let’s see first. It’s currently unclear what exactly Ophelia wants to do. But preparing early is never wrong.”

Only then did Agu nod.

After everyone left, Saul sat alone in the room, unconsciously beginning to stroke the white porcelain cat on the table.

“If Ophelia won’t work, the pentagram must choose someone else.”

In places ordinary people couldn’t see, Sky City’s atmosphere began growing tense.

Saul continued teaching at the lecture hall as usual.

Now, the number of third-level apprentices had increased rather than decreased.

This wasn’t because Saul’s apprentices failed to advance—on the contrary, three apprentices from his substitute class had successfully advanced to true wizard status.

This success rate had already shocked other instructors and apprentices. Everyone knew the lecture hall had gotten a very capable substitute instructor. Some third-level apprentices who had given up on advancement signed up for classes, hoping to seize this opportunity and become the next apprentice to advance to wizard status.

One day a month later, Paul was dragged to class by a friend who also hadn’t attended the lecture hall for a long time.

He didn’t really want to attend—not because he didn’t want to advance, but because he’d brought his daughter Mina along on this guard mission.

As a result, during this period when Sky City only allowed entry but not exit, he’d been unable to send his daughter back to their hometown.

Sky City wasn’t as wonderful as it appeared on the surface. Paul didn’t even feel safe leaving Mina alone in their rental room.

But now, his landlord—the good friend who’d dragged him to class—had his sister accompany Mina, so Paul finally had time to go out alone.

His friend Nero enthusiastically introduced, “I heard that new instructor used another student as an example in class a week ago, directly modifying his locator to be incredibly powerful. He’s already gone back to prepare for his advancement ceremony. Ah, if only he could use me as an example today.”

Paul kept looking back. Though he maintained a gloomy expression all day long, he was very concerned about his daughter.

“I’ll only attend one class with you, then leave after it ends.”

“Really, ever since having a daughter, you’re completely unfit to be a wizard. A true wizard should be like Instructor Saul—rational and proud!”

Paul’s head-turning motion froze. “What instructor? What’s his name?”

(End of Chapter)

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